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...When Gingrich's bus pulled up, Dillard stood silently holding his sign and watched the news-media horde swamp the candidate. Gingrich stepped down from the bus and made a beeline for Dillard. He stopped in front of Dillard and his sign and parked himself for a round of handshaking and pictures with voters. The placement couldn't have been worse. There was Gingrich, standing with his wife Callista at their first event of the day, and a giant Ron Paul sign floated inches from their crowns. Noticing the awkward optics, Gingrich aides and security personnel swarmed Dillard, trying to intimidate him into...

n an apparent about-face, US officials criticized Tuesday evening the deal brokered for the freedom of Gilad Shalit, which set hundreds of terrorists, including those who had murdered Americans, free. The criticism came after it became clear that the released terrorists included those who had murdered Jews with United States citizenship. Earlier on Tuesday, US President Barak Obama had said he was pleased with the deal that set Shalit free despite his own nation’s strict policy of not negotiating with terrorists for the release of its citizens. Obama also expressed the hope Israel and officials in Ramallah would take the...

No longer constrained by campaign advisers who insisted on such conventions as “message discipline,” Gingrich fulminated against President Obama, the news media, activist judges and assorted other liberal bogeymen for 41 minutes here Thursday night. It was classic Newt – slashing attacks, an array of ideas, and a few plugs for his website. All jumbled together with little cohesion. The former speaker, it seems, is very much enjoying the post-consultant phase of his candidacy. Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0611/57183.html#ixzz1PVO4yauY

During her modeling career, Cindy Crawford was skilled at switching outfits. Now, she’s switching presidential candidates, it seems. Eric Fehrnstrom, a spokesman for Mitt Romney, took to Twitter Monday to oh-so-subtly boast that Team Romney has a new backer in its corner: Cindy Crawford. “Cindy Crawford appears in a demonstration video at Romney call day to show people how to use ComMitt fundraising software,” wrote Fehrnstrom. But it wasn’t that long ago — 2008, in fact, — when Crawford could be seen pulling for then-Sen. Barack Obama in support of his presidential aspirations. Fehrnstrom was referring to an event held...

Tim Pawlenty: Courage to Stand for Renewable Energy Two weeks ago State Rep. Joe Atkins (DFL -- Inver Grove Heights) invited former Governor Tim Pawlenty to testify against HF 72 (Beard), a bill which calls for a repeal of a greenhouse gas emission reduction law spearheaded by Gov. Pawlenty in 2007. The former Governor did not respond. In the absence of Governor's testimony, Atkins played a short video for the House Commerce committee at today's hearing which included several public comments by Governor Pawlenty's in support of renewable energy policies which HF 72 would repeal. "Governor Pawlenty has shown the...

VAN SUSTEREN: Continuing with former governor Sarah Palin on illegal immigration. VAN SUSTEREN: Both parties have made promises. I mean, we pull up sound bites where, you know, both sides, you know, Democrat, Republicans, say, you know, Secure the border, secure the border. And then once in office, we certainly don't see a whole lot of action. Had the election gone another way, or even if you were president, what would you do about immigration? PALIN: The very first thing is literally secure the border! VAN SUSTEREN: How? PALIN: People mock the idea of a fence. What's wrong with building...

Kirsten Gillibrand, New York's junior senator, doesn't just flip-flop on is sues as convenient -- she also revises her past. Voters, beware: Gillibrand is a chameleon on plaid, a woman who has and will do anything, say anything, forget anything, spin anything to get elected. Her 180-degree reversals on gun control, gay marriage and immigration -- making her one of the most liberal members of the Senate -- are old news. But that's far from the only way she remakes herself, as we discuss in our new book, "2010: Take Back America." Start with her habit of censoring her own...

Remember Joe the Plumber? He was the blue-collar dude who confronted Barack Obama late in the 2008 campaign with this challenge: "Your new tax plan's going to tax me more, isn't it?" Nonsense, replied the candidate: "From 250 [thousand dollars a year] down, your taxes are going to stay the same." Indeed, he insisted, 95 percent of "working people" would see their taxes go down in his administration. Well, think again. A year into his presidency, Obama now says he's "agnostic" on what was the principal plank in his economic platform: No tax hikes for individuals making $200,000 a year...

There are two ways to view this video of a 2005 floor speech by then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-CA, condemning Republican leaders for not allowing members three days to read "a bill of thousands of pages" before voting on it. The video is posted on Breitbart TV and is well worth watching in the aftermath of Speaker Pelosi's legislative blitzkreig of the past week to gain passage of her version of Obamacare at all costs. It was done with not even a token nod in the direction of allowing the sort of legislative transparency she promised voters during the...

Thanks a lot, Hillary! In a surprise turnaround that will cost the city $260 million in back taxes and untold millions in future lost revenue, Hillary Rodham Clinton's State Department has quietly reversed a longstanding policy requiring foreign governments to pay taxes on some diplomatic residences. It's a shocking about-face by Secretary of State Clinton -- who repeatedly spoke in favor of the city's right to collect the taxes when she was New York's junior senator. The Big Apple, which recently won a federal court ruling requiring India and Mongolia to fork over some $46 million in back taxes, is...

This is a rush transcript from "On the Record," June 29, 2009. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated. GRETA VAN SUSTEREN, FOX NEWS HOST: Is President Obama going to break his promise, his campaign promise to you about your taxes? We report, you decide. Listen carefully to what President Obama said during the campaign. (BEGIN FLASHBACK VIDEO CLIP) SEN. BARACK OBAMA, D-ILL., PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I can make a firm pledge. Under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 a year will see any form of tax increase -- not your income tax,...

WAPO reports: Kerry's spokeswoman now tells The Sleuth the senator really didn't mean what he said, though his clarification would hardly qualify as an apology. "We stand corrected, the truth is every Democrat hopes Governor Palin is in the public eye for a long, long time, especially on the 2012 presidential ballot," Kerry spokeswoman Jodi Seth says. "Lately it's been Vice President Cheney that everyone hopes would lose the cameras and go for a long leisurely hike on the Appalachian Trail. And good grief, if anyone thinks John Kerry is afraid of strong, smart women, they sure haven't met his...

Barack Obama inherited a set of national-security policies that he rejected during the campaign but now embraces as president. This is a stunning and welcome about-face. For example, President Obama kept George W. Bush's military tribunals for terror detainees after calling them an "enormous failure" and a "legal black hole." His campaign claimed last summer that "court systems . . . are capable of convicting terrorists." Upon entering office, he found out they aren't. He insisted in an interview with NBC in 2007 that Congress mandate "consequences" for "a failure to meet various benchmarks and milestones" on aid to Iraq....

IN a call with President Obama Tuesday morn ing, Sen. Arlen Specter declared: "I'm a loyal Democrat." Given that Specter already broke with the party once -- he left to become a Republican in 1965 -- one could forgive Obama for waiting to see whether the Pennsylvanian will keep this latest pledge. A few tests coming up should help Democrats determine quickly whether they've gained a loyal foot soldier. Of course, Specter's already made clear that he serves only one master: his own interests. But to keep from looking too cravenly self-serving, he must avoid inconsistencies that would provide fodder...

Sen. Arlen Specter's switch to the Democratic Party has implications on a personal and national scale. For Pennsylvanians, who must decide who will represent us in the U.S. Senate next year, the stakes are personal. A central question will be whether Mr. Specter can be trusted on anything. In recent weeks, Mr. Specter has made numerous statements about how important it is to deny Democrats the 60th seat in the U.S. Senate and how he intended to remain a Republican to prevent one-party dominance in Washington. What Pennsylvanians have to ask themselves now is whether Mr. Specter is, in fact,...

"Huffington Post is running an item implying that President Obama has flip-flopped on the timetable for acquiring a new First Dog, a process that is proving to be harder than filling the Secretary of Commerce post."

(edit)Police are handing out the footwear to help drunken ladettes get home uninjured after spotting a number of women staggering home in unsuitable shoes.  (edit) 'Sometimes people get drunk and you see them carrying footwear which is inappropriate,' he said.  'The emphasis is on providing replacement footwear for people to get home in, should they find their high heels uncomfortable, inappropriate or soiled.'   The footwear will be paid for by £30,000 worth of funding secured from the Home Office by Safer Communities Torbay. Police chief, Supt Chris Singer said: 'Linking in with our pastors this funding represents a significant opportunity...

As Americans render what Catholics call temporal judgment on President Bush, are they aware of the radical course correction they are about to make? More Opinion This center-right country is about to vastly strengthen a liberal Congress whose approval rating is 10 percent and implant in Washington a regime further to the left than any in American history. Consider. As of today, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the San Francisco Democrat, anticipates gains of 15 to 30 seats in the House. Sen. Harry Reid, whose partisanship grates even on many in his own party, may see his caucus expand in the Senate...

Contradicts Fight the Smears' claim, "Barack Obama never organized with ACORN" Obama's two-faced statements on his involvement with ACORN reminds us of a scene in Gilbert and Sullivan's "The Mikado" in which Ko-Ko, the Lord High Executioner, must perform an execution to avoid the abolition of his office. The Mikado's incognito son, Nanki-Poo, volunteers to be "executed" to avoid an unwanted marriage, and goes into hiding afterward. The official Poo-Bah is initially quite pleased with his role in the purported execution. Mikado: And this is the certificate of his death. "At Titipu, in the presence of the Lord Chancellor, Lord...

Yes, immigration is a complicated and combustible issue for political candidates — and the economic meltdown is everyone’s top priority. No, that is no excuse for ignoring immigration or lying about it to voters, as John McCain and Barack Obama have been doing.

More vacillation from the vapid ONE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BnLozS-TnM&feature=related

The troop surge in Iraq has been more successful than anyone could have imagined, Barack Obama conceded Thursday in his first-ever interview on FOX News. As recently as July, the Democratic presidential candidate declined to rate the surge a success, but said it had helped reduce violence in the country. On Thursday, Obama acknowledged the 2007 increase in U.S. troops has benefited the Iraqi people. “I think that the surge has succeeded in ways that nobody anticipated,” Obama said while refusing to retract his initial opposition to the surge. “I’ve already said it’s succeeded beyond our wildest dreams.” Speaking on...

Denver — In 2007, Senator Barack Obama stood up for a gun owner. He endorsed Chicago Alderman Dorothy Tillman in her Democratic primary. Not only was she a gun owner, but she had even pulled a gun on her colleagues during a contentious 1991 ward redistricting hearing, according to eyewitnesses. Tillman, best known for demanding to be served by black (not white) waiters, and for advocating reparations for slavery, narrowly lost her race despite Obama’s support. It would be only a slight exaggeration to say that this was the strongest effort Obama has ever made to support gun rights. The...

WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's position on space exploration continued to evolve Sunday as the Illinois Democrat endorsed a congressional plan to add $2 billion to NASA's budget and agreed to back at least one more space shuttle mission.

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The Barack Obama campaign is changing its story again about why the pro-abortion presidential candidate voted against a bill that would have required adequate medical care for babies who survive botched abortions. The infanticide bill has dogged Obama throughout the campaign.

When Russia attacked Georgia, McCain blasted the bad guys telling Russia to basically get the hell out. Obama put down the Strawberry Daiquiri (freshly made at the beach bar in Maui) and gave his best Rodney King, telling everyone to settle down and work it out through the U.N. Nothing about Russia getting out of another sovereign country. Nothing about who is wrong and who is right. Just a small shriek at the sight of blood and whining to stop the fighting. Overnight somebody must have told Obama that Georgia is an American ally and McCain (surprise) had the more...

ARLINGTON, VA -- U.S. Senator John McCain's presidential campaign issued the following statement from McCain 2008 Communications Director Jill Hazelbaker in defense of Barack Obama's energy positions: "Senator Obama's stance on offshore oil drilling has been mischaracterized. He has not changed his position. He has continually campaigned against additional drilling, calling the policy a 'gimmick' saying it was a 'scheme' and ridiculing those who support it. With his steadfast opposition to John McCain's 'all of the above' approach to our energy crisis, Americans should know that Barack Obama remains opposed to additional domestic oil drilling. Speaker Pelosi, MoveOn.org and the...

WASHINGTON — Amid record gas prices and mounting criticism from the McCain campaign, Senator Obama is shifting his stance on key energy issues. His campaign insists the moves demonstrate his pragmatism, but Republicans say the Illinois senator is merely following the polls. Mr. Obama yesterday called for releasing 70 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, less than one month after he voiced opposition to tapping the emergency stockpile. The presumptive Democratic nominee also said he is open to a Senate compromise that includes new offshore drilling, though he has spent weeks criticizing Republican drilling proposals. Mr. Obama's...

We urge you, then, to listen to the voices of the people who can lift you to the presidency and beyond. Since your historic victory in the primary, there have been troubling signs that you are moving away from the core commitments shared by many who have supported your campaign, toward a more cautious and centrist stance--including, most notably, your vote for the FISA legislation granting telecom companies immunity from prosecution for illegal wiretapping, which angered and dismayed so many of your supporters. We recognize that compromise is necessary in any democracy. We understand that the pressures brought to bear...

Politics: Where does Obama stand on the issues? Everywhere and nowhere, it seems. His shift on drilling shows flexibility, but it leaves his convictions a mystery.All politicians change positions now and then, and that's not always a bad thing. Refusing to submit one's views to reality checks is not leadership. It's just stubbornness. Then again, a real leader doesn't take such change lightly. Voters are right to be suspicious of flip-flops that seem motivated by no reason other than the polls. Both Barack Obama and John McCain have changed their stands on offshore oil drilling recently, and clearly they were...

Since your historic victory in the primary, there have been troubling signs that you are moving away from the core commitments shared by many who have supported your campaign, toward a more cautious and centrist stance--including, most notably, your vote for the FISA legislation granting telecom companies immunity from prosecution for illegal wiretapping, which angered and dismayed so many of your supporters.

Barack Obama proposed tapping the strategic oil reserve on Monday to help lower gas prices, reversing an earlier stance, and called rival John McCain a tool of big oil companies as rising energy costs took center stage in the U.S. presidential campaign.

Via Jim Geraghty, who caught this even while on vacation. In August 2005, Obama agreed with George Bush’s decision to release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in order to buffer the economy from the effects of Hurricane Katrina. However, Obama warned that such actions should only take place in times of real emergency ... Today, we discovered what Barack Obama considers a genuine emergency — a drop in the polls:

Barack Obama on 7/7/08 (much more recent than the 2005 comments): "I do not believe that we should use the strategic oil reserves at this point. I have said and, in fact, supported a congressional resolution that said that we should suspend putting more oil into the strategic oil reserve, but the strategic oil reserve, I think, has to be reserved for a genuine emergency. You have a situation, let's say, where there was a major oil facility in Saudi Arabia that was destroyed as a consequence of terrorist acts, and you suddenly had huge amounts of oil taken out...

So just how upset is the leftwing blogosphere over Barack Obama's switch on his "rock solid" opposition to offshore oil drilling? Try over 4700 angry post (as of this writing) at the HUffington POst THREAD, "Obama Shifts, Says He May Back Offshore Drilling," announcing this latest 180 by the Obamassiah. Perhaps the left was reconciled that the switch on FISA by Obama would be his last major switch but this change on position on offshore oil drilling is just too much for them. Likewise the DUmmies and KOmmies are beyond upset with Obama on this switch as well as...

Democratic candidate Barack Obama on Saturday backed away from rival John McCain's challenge for a series of joint appearances, agreeing only to the standard three debates in the fall. In May, when a McCain adviser proposed a series of pre-convention appearances at town hall meetings, Obama said, "I think that's a great idea." In summer stumping on the campaign trail, McCain has often noted that Obama had not followed through and joined him in any events. Obama's reversal on town hall debates is part of a play-it-safe strategy he's adopted since claiming the nomination and grabbing a lead in national...

You'd think a guy who has demonstrated such flexibility on everything from campaign finance to NAFTA to the Second Amendment to the surge could find a way to wangle some townhall meetings with John McCain into his schedule. But gosh darn it, that would just be too tough for Barack Obama, explains George Stephanopoulos. The "This Week" host made his excuses for the Dem candidate on today's Good Morning America. BILL WEIR: The Obama campaign just agreed to three debates after the McCain campaign called for ten or so townhall meetings. Given his oratory skills, why won't Obama answer that...

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama responded Saturday to criticism that he has changed his position on opposing offshore oil drilling. Obama said Friday that he would be willing to compromise on his position against offshore oil drilling if it were part of a more overarching strategy to lower energy costs. "My interest is in making sure we've got the kind of comprehensive energy policy that can bring down gas prices," Obama told The Palm Beach Post early into a two-day swing through Florida. But on Saturday morning, Obama said this "wasn't really a new position." "I made...

ARLINGTON, Va., Aug. 2 /Standard Newswire/ -- Today, in Florida, Barack Obama once again demonstrated that his words really don't matter. When discussing NASA programs, Barack Obama said that "it's still being reported" that he would delay the NASA Constellation Program to pay for his early education program. Unfortunately for Barack Obama, that is what he proposed and has been saying for months: BARACK OBAMA: "It's Still Being Reported"...

McCain's campaign disparaged Obama for backing off. "We understand it might be beneath a worldwide celebrity of Barack Obama's magnitude to appear at town hall meetings alongside John McCain and directly answer questions from the American people, but we hope he'll reconsider," spokesman Brian Rogers said.

TITUSVILLE, Fla - Standing with Florida Senator and former astronaut Bill Nelson 20 minutes north of the spiritual home of America’s space program in Cape Canaveral, Barack Obama committed to keeping NASA exploring the outer reaches of the cosmos for years to come - reversing a pledge to cut funding for new space flights. Obama recalled watching American astronauts emerge from the Pacific ocean after space flights as a boy in his Native Hawaii. “When I was growing up, NASA inspired the world with achievements we’re still proud of,” he said. “Today, we have an administration that sets ambitious goals...

To pile on Matt's earlier post, Obama's flip on drilling strikes me as a major error. Even when analyzing it entirely as a political move, where the specifics of the legislation and the popularity of drilling are irrelevant, it still comes off very poorly. Straight up, it just looks like he caved. That is a terrible image for any politician to radiate. It isn't about moving to the left, right and center. It is about not moving away from yourself. That looks bad, no matter what the bill is, and no matter how popular is may be. This won't help...

WASHINGTON - Democratic candidate Barack Obama on Saturday backed further away from rival John McCain's challenge for a series of Lincoln-Douglas debates, agreeing only to the standard three face-offs in the fall proposed by the Commission on Presidential Debates.

ABC News' Sunlen Miller reports: Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., fought back against the perception that he’s shifted away from his opposition to off-shore oil drilling by suggesting he softened his position as a compromise toward a broader energy policy. Obama first indicated Friday in an interview with the Palm Beach Post that he would be willing to compromise on his opposition to off-shore drilling, and would consider expanding the current drilling boundaries -- if it was part of a plan to make the country more energy independent by developing more fuel-efficient cars and alternative energy sources. Today, at a press...

WASHINGTON — Barack Obama Friday dropped his opposition to offshore oil drilling, saying he could go along with the idea if it was part of a broader energy package. Obama made his comments in St. Petersburg during an interview with the Palm Beach Post. "My interest is in making sure we've got the kind of comprehensive energy policy that can bring down gas prices," he said. "If, in order to get that passed, we have to compromise in terms of a careful, well thought-out drilling strategy that was carefully circumscribed to avoid significant environmental damage - I don't want to...

ORLANDO, Florida (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said on Friday he would back limited offshore drilling as part of a broader energy package that attempted to bring down gas prices and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. Obama dropped his blanket opposition to any expansion of offshore drilling and signaled support for a bipartisan compromise in Congress aimed at breaking a deadlock on energy that includes limited drilling. "My interest is in making sure we've got the kind of comprehensive energy policy that can bring down gas prices," Obama said in an interview with The Palm Beach Post...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Friday he would be willing to support limited additional offshore oil drilling if that's what it takes to enact a comprehensive policy to foster fuel-efficient autos and develop alternate energy sources. Shifting from his previous opposition to expanded offshore drilling, the Illinois senator told a Florida newspaper he could get behind a compromise with Republicans and oil companies to prevent gridlock over energy. Republican rival John McCain, who earlier dropped his opposition to offshore drilling, has been criticizing Obama on the stump and in broadcast ads for clinging to...

Senator Obama refuses to be boxed in between what he considers two “false choices”, either:1) …On such and such date, come Hell or high water we’ve gotten our troops out, and be blind to anything that happens in intermediate months2) …completely defer to whatever the commanders on the ground say (because his military and strategic knowledge is better than theirs)LINKBy dismissing out of hand the absoluteness of a calender date by which all Americans will be out of Iraq, Senator Obama has just capitulated the political left’s dogma for the past six years (a debate that started in 2002 before...

As Oppenheimer writes in this piece, "There is a fierce behind-the-scenes battle for influence over presumptive Democratic candidate Barack Obama's Hispanic and Latin American agenda, and some Democratic strategists say that its outcome could determine the result of the November elections." "Some Obama backers in South Florida, in particular, are especially miffed at what they see as excessive power by labor-union-tied, left-leaning Mexican-American leaders at Obama's Chicago headquarters over the campaign's nationwide Hispanic and Latin American policy strategies."

I hate flip-flops. That is, I hate the shoes. They're impractical. Unsafe, even. But I really hate the political use of the term, usually leveled as an accusation. It's gone from being a legitimate, shorthand descriptor to being a nonsensical dismissal. Don't dress them in the darn things, but let politicians flip-flop, already. If, of course, by "flip-flop," one means a prudent and authentic change of mind. Now, that's probably just a flip, but I guess then we'd be looking at things rationally. The Washington Post, in fact, just recently encouraged a flip, accusing Barack Obama of a "foolish consistency"...